Name: Jong Kyu Jung (Jap: Kenji)
Age:18
Gender: Male
Occupation: Student (Grade 12)
Appearance: Slightly tall, not handsome nor ugly
Location: Korea
Personality/Quirks/Unique Personality Traits: He is very patriotic. He loves his family. He hates Japanese.
Family: Mother, Father, Younger sister and brother
Education: He is currently attending Korean Highschool in Jinju.
Languages you speak: Korean, some Japanese and Chinese.
Your main concerns at this time and in life: His main concern is what he should do after graduating high school, should he help his parents farming, or should he go to seoul and start his own future.
Portrait (an image that you and we can live with):
Diary Entry #1 and #2 (Japan's Invasion of China and the Start of War with the USA, 1937-41):
1937 July 8
School is horrible as usual. The history teacher Eiji Sato - short and ugly as always - was smiling all day. We thought he got a new girlfriend, but soon we realized that he is too ugly to get one. During lunch, I was eating lunch with my friends. The usual old iron lunch box with barley and kimchi. My situation was still not that bad. Unless you're a Japanese, this was quite normal for Koreans. My friend, who's father works as a miner, barely brings lunch to school. He have 4 bothers and sisters below him, that he have to work in a shop a Japanese owns. We were speaking Korean during lunch, until Mr. Sato called me up.
"Hey, Kenji! Are you speaking Korean right now?"
I ran up to him in a hurry, almost tripping. He suddenly grabbed my ears and pulled it. He yelled at me in Japanese, "Did you speak Korean? Are you mad? Korea does not exist anymore, be proud that you are now a Japanese!" This statement made me fly into a rage. I grabbed my fist tight, almost as if I was to hit him. I felt a great temptation to punch Ugly Eiji in the head, but I soon realized that this will just bring me more trouble. He kicked me on the stomach three times and suddenly stopped. I wondered why he would stop so soon. If he started beating up a student, it usually lasted more than half an hour. I looked at him with a face of wonder. He made a evil grin and said "you can be the one, come with me to the office." I followed him to the office hobbling along the way. He gave me a paper that had "Application for Military" written on the top. I suddenly thought that this was the end of my life. If I go to the army, Japanese officers would not even consider me as a same soldier and use me as a human shield. Mr. Sato said
"I am offering you the honor to fight for our empire. You can die with honor serving the country. Of course, you can choose not to, but you know the consequences." That was it... I have to prepare to say farewell to my family. I didn't tell them yet. I am leaving at the following monday. I wish I can at least survive and meet my parents once more. I had a friend named Ma Lili, who I exchanged letters with in China. Before I leave, I wanted to tell her that I can't mail her anymore. I told her that I was enrolled in the Japanese Army and that I'm going to fight a war. I also mentioned that she should be careful.
1938 January 12
I am fighting the Sino-Japanese war in Manchuria as a Japanese soldier. It is a disgrace for me that I have to do the dirty works for Japan. It is lucky that I survived this long. 6 month have passed since I was forced to join the army. I had many fellow soldiers from Korea that fought with me, but nobody lasted more than a month. I was a unique case in this army. However, this face doesn't make me fee any better. Killing the Chinese for Japan is rather disgusting to me. Even though I did this for nearly half an year, I still can't bare the feeling of killing somebody.Also, not only killing, but I had to watch my comrades die. Most of my comrades are Koreans. They are all like me. They were normal high school students until the Japanese Officers randomly or intentionally chose them to fight for their army. No one here ever had the right training to fight as a soldier. As soon as a new soldier arrive, the officers will give the new soldiers Type 38 rifle some grenades and thats it. Than these soldiers will straight go to the battlefield with no idea of what will happen to them. Some might know how to use the weapons, but some would not - which they would rarely survive. I still remember the first day I came here in Manchuria. I had to travel for days by trains and boats to reach China. As soon as I reached Manchuria, I was given one rifle and the least amount of bullets to shoot a round. I headed to my bunk and unpacked my stuff; my bag with 2 pictures and 1 diary. One of the person who was already there told me that he was here for 2 weeks, and the people who were there before he came all died or is almost dead. He told me the most simplest way to use the rifle. Not even half an hour since I was in my bunker, there was an alarm. I wasn't prepared at all. I was in a panic, when the Japanese officer grabbed me and put me in the row. That day, I luckily survived. However, I had to watch the man who told me that he survived for 2 weeks die, right next to me. Since than, I focused on surviving- to survive until I get to revenge against these Japanese.
1942 June 10
Our army is lacking supply. The Chinese Guerilla army is keep attacking our supply ship. For few weeks, I ate canned foods, but it ran out soon. I was lucky in the army to even have that canned foods. Now I am a sergeant. Other Japanese sergeant shows extreme hatred towards me. No "Josenjin" became a sergeant before, but I survived long enough to become one. Because I am one of the least favored sergeant in town, I always have to do all the dirty works. They hope I will die in one of the missions, but I never die. It is like a curse to me. I have to serve as a Japanese soldier killing others for Japan's own good. I always wonder, 'why am I here? What am I fighting for?'
The army was so desperate for new supplies. They had to send me to the port to safely get the supplies back to the army. I think they already knew that the Chinese guerilla army will bomb the supplies. I think that they just wanted me dead. However, the devil of death wants me to experience the hell in Earth, not the hell in the underland. I was waiting for the supplies "peacefully" until the guerilla army attacked me. Most of my comrades were killed, but I was caught alive. There I met Colonel Ji Xingwen. He was the formal KMT Leader, but the army evaporated after Japanese Army took over. I could see the anger in his eyes. He was trying to kill me with his pistol and I was about to accept my death. However he suddenly unloaded his pistol and set next to me. He started talking to me. He said
"You are not a Japanese, right? You're a Korean, I can see that."
I nodded powerlessly. "I see your hatred towards Japan, but there is nothing you can do. I lost everything from them as well. Don't lose your hope. The day will come when we will gain our freedom back."
He just tapped me on the shoulder and went away with his troop. I watched him disappear along the horizon.
1945 August 9
The army is in a panic. I cannot tell anyone else in the army about this, but Hiroshima was bombed. Also there are some news that Nagasaki was bombed as well. A quiet but yet noticeable panic was formed along the leading classes of the army. I am now promoted to a Sergeant Major. This is the furthest a Korean soldier can ever reach. In a normal case, no Korean would have been possible. However, I survived so far and fought the war for 7 years now. Finally, today, the tension broke when the Soviet army started a huge attack on Manchuria.
We were surrounded. The Soviet formed an alliance with the Mongolian and the Chinese. Huge armies were advancing from the East and the West side. The armies were attacking from 3 sides, that we had nothing but to fight directly against them. I led my troop and advanced West. I was desperate this time. Before, I did not care if I died or not, but today I had hope. I had hope that the Japanese will surrender and I can finally go back to Korea in 7 years. I told my troops,
"Today we will survive! We will earn our victory, and safely go back to our sweet home! Fight with me, lets all survive and win!"
We advanced fiercely. We shot and stabbed the Chinese and Russians without any hesitation. I could hear screaming of people who got shot. I could hear the bombs explode and kill my comrades next to me. It didn’t matter to me anymore. I just needed to survive. Soon on the higher valley, I could see a familiar face. It was Colonel Ji Xingwen, the man who almost killed me. Our eyes met. He is a hero who fight for the same purpose as I do, but this was a war. I had to kill him, or else I would die. I pointed my rifle at him and pressed the trigger. It missed. With a sad eye, he also pointed his rifle and pressed the trigger. This time it shot my left arm. I dropped my gun and fainted.
Some hours later, I was in a camp. However, I couldn’t see any Japanese but the camp was full of Chinese, Russians, and Mongolians. There was Colonel Ji Xingwen right next to my bed. I was confused for a second. He noticed me waking up in a confusion and opened his mouth and spoke.
Age:18
Gender: Male
Occupation: Student (Grade 12)
Appearance: Slightly tall, not handsome nor ugly
Location: Korea
Personality/Quirks/Unique Personality Traits: He is very patriotic. He loves his family. He hates Japanese.
Family: Mother, Father, Younger sister and brother
Education: He is currently attending Korean Highschool in Jinju.
Languages you speak: Korean, some Japanese and Chinese.
Your main concerns at this time and in life: His main concern is what he should do after graduating high school, should he help his parents farming, or should he go to seoul and start his own future.
Portrait (an image that you and we can live with):
Diary Entry #1 and #2 (Japan's Invasion of China and the Start of War with the USA, 1937-41):
1937 July 8
School is horrible as usual. The history teacher Eiji Sato - short and ugly as always - was smiling all day. We thought he got a new girlfriend, but soon we realized that he is too ugly to get one. During lunch, I was eating lunch with my friends. The usual old iron lunch box with barley and kimchi. My situation was still not that bad. Unless you're a Japanese, this was quite normal for Koreans. My friend, who's father works as a miner, barely brings lunch to school. He have 4 bothers and sisters below him, that he have to work in a shop a Japanese owns. We were speaking Korean during lunch, until Mr. Sato called me up.
"Hey, Kenji! Are you speaking Korean right now?"
I ran up to him in a hurry, almost tripping. He suddenly grabbed my ears and pulled it. He yelled at me in Japanese, "Did you speak Korean? Are you mad? Korea does not exist anymore, be proud that you are now a Japanese!" This statement made me fly into a rage. I grabbed my fist tight, almost as if I was to hit him. I felt a great temptation to punch Ugly Eiji in the head, but I soon realized that this will just bring me more trouble. He kicked me on the stomach three times and suddenly stopped. I wondered why he would stop so soon. If he started beating up a student, it usually lasted more than half an hour. I looked at him with a face of wonder. He made a evil grin and said "you can be the one, come with me to the office." I followed him to the office hobbling along the way. He gave me a paper that had "Application for Military" written on the top. I suddenly thought that this was the end of my life. If I go to the army, Japanese officers would not even consider me as a same soldier and use me as a human shield. Mr. Sato said
"I am offering you the honor to fight for our empire. You can die with honor serving the country. Of course, you can choose not to, but you know the consequences." That was it... I have to prepare to say farewell to my family. I didn't tell them yet. I am leaving at the following monday. I wish I can at least survive and meet my parents once more. I had a friend named Ma Lili, who I exchanged letters with in China. Before I leave, I wanted to tell her that I can't mail her anymore. I told her that I was enrolled in the Japanese Army and that I'm going to fight a war. I also mentioned that she should be careful.
1938 January 12
I am fighting the Sino-Japanese war in Manchuria as a Japanese soldier. It is a disgrace for me that I have to do the dirty works for Japan. It is lucky that I survived this long. 6 month have passed since I was forced to join the army. I had many fellow soldiers from Korea that fought with me, but nobody lasted more than a month. I was a unique case in this army. However, this face doesn't make me fee any better. Killing the Chinese for Japan is rather disgusting to me. Even though I did this for nearly half an year, I still can't bare the feeling of killing somebody.Also, not only killing, but I had to watch my comrades die. Most of my comrades are Koreans. They are all like me. They were normal high school students until the Japanese Officers randomly or intentionally chose them to fight for their army. No one here ever had the right training to fight as a soldier. As soon as a new soldier arrive, the officers will give the new soldiers Type 38 rifle some grenades and thats it. Than these soldiers will straight go to the battlefield with no idea of what will happen to them. Some might know how to use the weapons, but some would not - which they would rarely survive. I still remember the first day I came here in Manchuria. I had to travel for days by trains and boats to reach China. As soon as I reached Manchuria, I was given one rifle and the least amount of bullets to shoot a round. I headed to my bunk and unpacked my stuff; my bag with 2 pictures and 1 diary. One of the person who was already there told me that he was here for 2 weeks, and the people who were there before he came all died or is almost dead. He told me the most simplest way to use the rifle. Not even half an hour since I was in my bunker, there was an alarm. I wasn't prepared at all. I was in a panic, when the Japanese officer grabbed me and put me in the row. That day, I luckily survived. However, I had to watch the man who told me that he survived for 2 weeks die, right next to me. Since than, I focused on surviving- to survive until I get to revenge against these Japanese.
1942 June 10
Our army is lacking supply. The Chinese Guerilla army is keep attacking our supply ship. For few weeks, I ate canned foods, but it ran out soon. I was lucky in the army to even have that canned foods. Now I am a sergeant. Other Japanese sergeant shows extreme hatred towards me. No "Josenjin" became a sergeant before, but I survived long enough to become one. Because I am one of the least favored sergeant in town, I always have to do all the dirty works. They hope I will die in one of the missions, but I never die. It is like a curse to me. I have to serve as a Japanese soldier killing others for Japan's own good. I always wonder, 'why am I here? What am I fighting for?'
The army was so desperate for new supplies. They had to send me to the port to safely get the supplies back to the army. I think they already knew that the Chinese guerilla army will bomb the supplies. I think that they just wanted me dead. However, the devil of death wants me to experience the hell in Earth, not the hell in the underland. I was waiting for the supplies "peacefully" until the guerilla army attacked me. Most of my comrades were killed, but I was caught alive. There I met Colonel Ji Xingwen. He was the formal KMT Leader, but the army evaporated after Japanese Army took over. I could see the anger in his eyes. He was trying to kill me with his pistol and I was about to accept my death. However he suddenly unloaded his pistol and set next to me. He started talking to me. He said
"You are not a Japanese, right? You're a Korean, I can see that."
I nodded powerlessly.
"I see your hatred towards Japan, but there is nothing you can do. I lost everything from them as well. Don't lose your hope. The day will come when we will gain our freedom back."
He just tapped me on the shoulder and went away with his troop. I watched him disappear along the horizon.
1945 August 9
The army is in a panic. I cannot tell anyone else in the army about this, but Hiroshima was bombed. Also there are some news that Nagasaki was bombed as well. A quiet but yet noticeable panic was formed along the leading classes of the army. I am now promoted to a Sergeant Major. This is the furthest a Korean soldier can ever reach. In a normal case, no Korean would have been possible. However, I survived so far and fought the war for 7 years now.
Finally, today, the tension broke when the Soviet army started a huge attack on Manchuria.
We were surrounded. The Soviet formed an alliance with the Mongolian and the Chinese. Huge armies were advancing from the East and the West side. The armies were attacking from 3 sides, that we had nothing but to fight directly against them. I led my troop and advanced West. I was desperate this time. Before, I did not care if I died or not, but today I had hope. I had hope that the Japanese will surrender and I can finally go back to Korea in 7 years. I told my troops,
"Today we will survive! We will earn our victory, and safely go back to our sweet home! Fight with me, lets all survive and win!"
We advanced fiercely. We shot and stabbed the Chinese and Russians without any hesitation. I could hear screaming of people who got shot. I could hear the bombs explode and kill my comrades next to me. It didn’t matter to me anymore. I just needed to survive. Soon on the higher valley, I could see a familiar face. It was Colonel Ji Xingwen, the man who almost killed me. Our eyes met. He is a hero who fight for the same purpose as I do, but this was a war. I had to kill him, or else I would die. I pointed my rifle at him and pressed the trigger. It missed. With a sad eye, he also pointed his rifle and pressed the trigger. This time it shot my left arm. I dropped my gun and fainted.
Some hours later, I was in a camp. However, I couldn’t see any Japanese but the camp was full of Chinese, Russians, and Mongolians. There was Colonel Ji Xingwen right next to my bed. I was confused for a second. He noticed me waking up in a confusion and opened his mouth and spoke.
“It's all over....”
http://cafe.naver.com/historyexam.cafe?iframe_url=/ArticleRead.nhn%3Farticleid=25550&
http://soviet-invasion-of-manchuria.co.tv/
http://korea-under-japanese-rule.co.tv/
http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=true&doc=80